Motion Science shows an effortless and effective way to create a light wrap in Ae.

A Light wrap effect is one of the cornerstones of compositing, and while most compositors have a native or simple solution for such a task, After Effects leaves users high and dry. If you don’t want to spring for the many third-party light wrap tools, you can create one of your own.

This new tutorial from Cameron Pierron (Motion Science) shows what could be the simplest way to create a composite-wrap effect by staking a few effects in After Effects. The tutorial doesn’t use the standard “set matte” way but instead uses a stack of set channels, gaussian blur, invert, and CC composite.

It’s worthwhile to note that this is the same technique shown by Kert Gartner nearly eleven years ago and is still relevant today!